Ajax AutoSearch
Ajax AutoSearch is a free WordPress Search Plugin that comes with a handful of essential customization options to enhance the search engine feature.
Use with caution
Ajax AutoSearch works, but test it on a staging site before relying on it in 2026. It runs on 10+ sites and was last updated 5 months ago, and scores 51/100 on our health check.
- Small user base (10+ active installs)
- Very few reviews so far
How does it stack up?
Side-by-side on installs, updates, ratings & support
Daily downloads
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where Ajax AutoSearch stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| ajax | >100 |
| auto-search | >100 |
| search | >100 |
Version adoption
Share of active sites per release.
About Ajax AutoSearch
From the official readme · v1.4.4Description
Ajax AutoSearch is a free WordPress Search Plugin that enhances the Search feature on your site. The plugin provides a handful of crucial customization options with which you have full control over the search results. Ajax AutoSearch includes features like Different Search Filters, Display Featured Image, Post Limit, and more. To make things easier for your visitors, you can display the search filter options like post, page, categories, and tags. Your visitors can choose the search content type they are searching for and get the adequate results in just a few seconds with the search filters option available. You can also choose to display the featured images of the search results. Ajax AutoSearch allows you to display up to 20 search results on a single page. The plugin is extremely lightweight and comes with only the essential configuration options. So, improve the search results for your visitors with Ajax AutoSearch. A quick solution for better user experience should always be a priority for all webmasters.
Installation
The easy way (via Dashboard) :
- Go to Plugins > Add New
- Type in the Ajax AutoSearch in Search Plugins box
- Click Install Now to install the plugin
- After Installation click activate to start using the Ajax AutoSearch
- Go to Ajax AutoSearch from Dashboard menu
Not so easy way (via FTP) :
- Download the Ajax AutoSearch
- Unarchive Ajax AutoSearch plugin
- Copy folder with ajax-autosearch.zip
- Open the ftp \wp-content\plugins\
- Paste the plug-ins folder in the folder
- Go to admin panel => open item “Plugins” => activate Ajax AutoSearch
- Go to Ajax AutoSearch from Dashboard menu
Changelog
1.4.4 (Released: May 18, 2026)
- Bug Fixed: Added missing translators comment for placeholder in i18n string on activation
- Bug Fixed: Escaped $stars_color output in inline CSS using esc_attr()
- Bug Fixed: WordPress.Security.EscapeOutput — replaced _e() with esc_html_e(), wrapped $text with esc_attr(), $settings[‘limit’] with esc_attr(), $k and $value with esc_attr()/esc_html() in dashboard display
- Bug Fixed: Sanitized all $_POST inputs in search() AJAX handler using sanitize_text_field(), wp_unslash(), and absint()
- Bug Fixed: Escaped no-thumb image URL output with esc_url()
- Bug Fixed: Sanitized $_GET inputs in ajax_autosearch_query() using sanitize_text_field(), wp_unslash(), sanitize_key(), and absint()
- Bug Fixed: Replaced echo sprintf() with printf() and escaped URL/attr args with esc_url()/esc_attr() in dashboard display
- Bug Fixed: Escaped href and title attributes in plugin meta links using esc_url() and esc_attr__()
- Bug Fixed: Wrapped $message in wp_kses_post() before passing to wp_die() on activation
- Bug Fixed: Added direct file access protection to includes/class-ajax-autosearch.php, includes/class-ajax-autosearch-loader.php, admin/partials/ajax-autosearch-admin-display.php, admin/partials/dashboard-display.php, admin/partials/footer.php, admin/partials/sidebar.php, public/partials/ajax-autosearch-public-display.php
- Compatibility check up to version 7.0
1.4.3 (Released: January 06, 2026)
- Compatibility check up to version 6.9
1.4.2 (Released: May 11, 2025)
- Compatibility check up to version 6.8
1.4.1 (Released: April 05, 2024)
- Compatibility check up to version 6.5
1.4 (Released: November 15, 2023)
- Compatibility check up to version 6.4
1.3.3 (Released: November 03, 2022)
- Compatibility check up to version 6.1
Screenshots
For developers
Is this your plugin? Show off the numbers.
Add a live badge to your site, docs or GitHub README. It updates on its own — no account needed.
Best Ajax AutoSearch alternatives
All ajax plugins →
FAQ
Ajax AutoSearch: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Oct 5, 2026
Is Ajax AutoSearch free?
Yes. Ajax AutoSearch is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is Ajax AutoSearch safe to use in 2026?
Ajax AutoSearch works, but test it on a staging site before relying on it in 2026. It runs on 10+ sites and was last updated 5 months ago, and scores 51/100 on our health check.
How many websites use Ajax AutoSearch?
Ajax AutoSearch is active on 10+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 15,814 times since it launched in January 2020. It was downloaded 238 times in the last 30 days.
Does Ajax AutoSearch work with WordPress 7.1?
Ajax AutoSearch is officially tested up to WordPress 7.0.6, while the latest release is 7.1.2. It may still work, but try it on a staging site first.
What PHP version does Ajax AutoSearch need?
Ajax AutoSearch requires PHP 7.4 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.
When was Ajax AutoSearch last updated?
The latest version, 1.4.4, was released on May 18, 2026 (5 months ago).
Who makes Ajax AutoSearch?
Ajax AutoSearch is developed and maintained by Catch Plugins.
What are the best alternatives to Ajax AutoSearch?
The most popular alternatives to Ajax AutoSearch are zipaddr-jp (50K+ installs), SearchWP Live Ajax Search (50K+ installs) and WP-Polls (40K+ installs).
Powered by PageForge
Want thousands of pages that rank like these? Build them in an afternoon.
This directory runs on the same engine as PageForge. Turn any spreadsheet, CSV or API into thousands of fast, SEO-ready WordPress pages — with schema, internal links and AI-written copy baked in.
- CSV, Google Sheets & API data sources
- AI content, schema & internal links per page
- Works with Elementor, Gutenberg, Yoast & Rank Math
- Free on WordPress.org — no credit card
